Shotfarm’s Rich Media Management and Hosting for Ecommerce Eliminates Manual Image Workflow

Chicago, IL, March 27, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Shotfarm announces today the public release of its Rich Media Hosting service, the company’s latest step towards the complete elimination of manual product image management.

Shotfarm members who currently use the company’s free Product Image Exchange to download their manufacturers’ images can now host the images directly from shotfarm’s world-class servers. The product images will appear on eCommerce websites via shotfarm’s HTML5 rich media viewer, which supports multiple images, deep zoom and full 360-degree spin.

Integration of the viewer with shotfarm’s Product Image Exchange replaces several manual processes for significant time savings. “Once they find the images they’re looking for, the typical workflow for a retailer is to download the images, rename them to a particular convention, generate multiple sizes for various web pages and re-upload them to a separate hosting provider,” said Lapchick. “Our hosting package automates every one of those processes.” One such powerful feature is a Thumbnail Factory that allows users to create as many different sizes of an image as necessary for their website and pushes them directly to the site’s ftp.

Analytics offer the ability to track viewer click rates across a site and measure its impact on conversion rates. A forthcoming enhancement will also allow consumers to rate images for usefulness, generating critical feedback for both retailers and manufacturers about how best to photograph and feature products for eCommerce.

Studies of the rich media industry have found alternate views, images of different color options and 360-spin to be the three most important features driving a purchase decision. “Manufacturers are supplying more, higher quality images—spin photography, in particular—and retailers are finding themselves in need of a cost-effective way to showcase that visual information to their customers,” said Mike Lapchick, founder and CEO of shotfarm. “As margins get thinner, retailers need to differentiate themselves beyond price. Providing compelling product presentations is a key way to do so.”

With customizable visual details and easy-to-maneuver controls, the brandable viewer provides a sleek interface and seamless customer experience. The 100 percent HTML5-based code ensures that the viewer will be visible on all mobile devices, including the iPhone and iPad, which together account for more than 150 million mobile devices.

Implementation of the viewer requires no more than a few lines of javascript code and is available in both a popup and embedded version. Pricing for a viewer subscription is click-driven and starts at $99 per month, more than 80 percent less than the industry average for rich media hosting services with integrated workflow.

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